Dentist suspended for self-prescribing drugs using patients’ names

A dentist has been handed a 12-month suspension by the General Dental Council (GDC) after a criminal conviction for fraud linked to self-prescribing diazepam using patients’ names.

In 2023, the dentist pleaded guilty to one count of fraud by false representation and received an eight-month suspended sentence, a £10,000 fine and a further £2,043.22 in costs and compensation.

The Professional Conduct Committee (PCC) heard directly from the dentist on the reasons behind their self-prescribing. They said they loved dentistry and had been doing a lot of public speaking at the time, which caused a great deal of anxiety.

They began taking diazepam, obtained in the names of patients they had not treated in years, the night before speaking to stop overthinking. The fraud was carried out between 2015 and 2022 and involved 579 tablets of diazepam.

Why was a GDC suspension imposed?

In choosing a sanction, the committee said it was ‘satisfied that the risk of repetition was low in this case’ as the dentist had ‘come a long way towards developing full insight’.

The committee found that their fitness to practise was not impaired on public protection grounds. However, it said a finding of impairment was necessary in the wider public interest, to maintain public confidence in the profession and uphold proper standards of conduct.

The PCC also said that taking no action, or imposing a reprimand, would not be sufficient given the seriousness of the fraud conviction and related dishonesty.

It therefore concluded that a 12-month suspension would be appropriate. The suspension will take effect 28 days from the date notice of the committee’s direction is deemed to have been served, unless the dentist appeals. The committee did not impose an immediate suspension order.

Several factors improved the committee’s impression of the dentist’s reflection on their actions, including that they:

• Self-reported to the health board
• Admitted the fraud early
• Apologised to affected patients and colleagues
• Complied with restrictions and drug testing
• Showed remorse and remediation.

The clinician managed to contact ten of the 11 patients whose names were used on the prescription, none of whom took issue with their conduct and two provided character testimonials for their case. The PCC therefore found that there was no evidence of direct patient harm.

The dentist said that, as they were 67 years old, they could have chosen to retire instead of going through fitness to practise proceedings. However, they wanted to proceed with the investigation to ‘maintain confidence in the profession’.

In closing, the dentist said that not a day had gone by where they had not thought about how ‘stupid’ their decision to self-prescribe was, and that they were very sorry now.

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